Trump demands: Europe should completely boycott Russian oil and gas

US President Donald Trump has called on European allies to stop buying Russian oil and gas and to impose high tariffs on Chinese imports, reports Politico.

While most EU countries have already reduced their Russian supplies, Hungary and Slovakia continue to use large quantities thanks to an exemption for the Druzhba pipeline. Turkey, a NATO member, also continues to export Russian oil, which makes it even more difficult to implement Trump's demands.
His goal of purchasing $750 billion worth of oil and gas from the US appears particularly ambitious.
To achieve this, the United States would have to triple its exports, while the EU would have to reduce imports from other suppliers, such as Norway, which is cheaper.

The EU's REPowerEU plan also does not yet offer any concrete mechanisms for companies to terminate existing contracts with Russia.

Even more difficult would be the introduction of punitive tariffs on Chinese goods: the EU is heavily dependent on Chinese imports, and Beijing could respond with harsh countermeasures.
Many diplomats therefore consider Trump's ideas to be virtually impossible to implement.

(lup)